Taylor Frankie Paul agreed to take a sobriety test in an attempt to resolve her ongoing custody dispute with ex-husband Tate Paul.
Court documents obtained by Us Weekly on July 2 outline a plan for Taylor, 32, to resume “unsupervised parent time” with her and Tate’s two children after Tate recently sought to restructure their custody agreement. (Taylor and Tate share daughter Indy, 8, and son Ocean, 6. The reality star also shares son Ever, 2, with ex-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen.)
On Tuesday, June 30, Tate filed a request for a temporary restraining order in a Utah court to change the terms of his and Taylor’s divorce and custody agreement. He submitted text messages and calls as evidence that Taylor recently checked into a rehab center without telling him. (Us reported on July 1 that Taylor voluntarily entered a rehab facility for a short stay and has since left.)
Tate’s request was denied by the court on Wednesday, July 1, because more information was needed. (Tate resubmitted an amended request the following day.)
“As Tate himself recognizes, many of his supporting allegations are based upon inadmissible hearsay, without any corroborating evidence,” court documents from July 1 read. “Many of the concerns, like the children not doing well in school and expressing sadness will require ongoing attention not remedied with an emergency order changing custody.”
The filing continued, “The court acknowledges that what he is allegedly hearing can create anxiety, but contrary to the claim that the children are in immediate danger, Taylor proffers that Tate left the children with her from June 11 through the 17, 2026, while he went to Iceland. The court cannot find an immediate and irreparable harm as contemplated by Rule 65A, and the motion is denied.”
These new court rulings from a Utah judge addressed Tate’s assertion that “recent events” caused the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to look into the welfare of his and Taylor’s children.
“Not only is this hearsay, the court needs some idea as to when and what happened and what steps DCFS has taken,” the filing read. “The only allegations are that ‘DCFS communications made the emergency nature of the risk clear.’ This is a conclusion. The court needs facts as to what supports the conclusion that there is an emergency.”
Tate’s affidavit claimed that he “learned” from a family member that Taylor recently had a voluntary stay in rehab.
Taylor Frankie Paul and Tate Paul Courtesy of Taylor Frankie Paul/Instagram
“Tate asks the court to consider the pattern of behavior over several years, arguing that the pattern is about to explode,” a Utah judge responded. “He is very concerned about Taylor’s admission to the Alpine Recovery Lodge, and Taylor’s allegedly lying about the reason for the stay.”
His affidavit also indicated that the production teams working with Taylor have “had it” with her. (Mormon Wives producer Jeff Jensen said in May that he was “very hopeful” that she’d resume filming on the show soon following a break in season 5 production.)
“There are many reasons for a production team to become frustrated with the talent. Foundation and details are lacking,” the judge wrote.
The court acknowledged that Taylor “made two offers” in an attempt to resolve Tate’s concerns over “Taylor’s admission to the Alpine Recovery Lodge, and [her] allegedly lying about the reason for the stay.”
Taylor agreed to share her treatment records with the DCFS and offered to take a drug test. (Taylor initially asked for Tate to take a drug test as well but the judge found no cause to “order Tate to take a drug test.”)
The court accepted Taylor’s proposal, provided that the DCFS “wishes to review her treatment records” and that she submit to a “15 panel hair or nail test” as well as a “Peth test for alcohol.”
Taylor Frankie Paul Bethany Baker – Pool/Getty Images
“If it is negative, Tate shall reimburse her. … She must take her prescriptions with her and have a doctor verify that the levels in her system are consistent with her prescribed dosage,” the ruling read.
The results of Taylor’s sobriety tests will be subject to “a strict protective order.”
“Until such time as the results have been issued, Taylor’s parent time shall be supervised. It is in both parties’ best interests that this supervision be professional so that there is an independent third party observing the interactions between mother and child,” a judge ruled.
However, the judge added, “If there is a positive test for any unprescribed drugs or alcohol or a determination that the levels in Taylor’s system are in excess of any prescribed drugs, Taylor’s parent time shall continue to be supervised … If the results are negative, Taylor will be restored to her unsupervised parent time.”
Us has reached out to Taylor’s representatives for comment.
Following the court’s initial denial of Tate’s request for a restraining order, Taylor wrote via her Instagram Story on Friday, July 3, that she’d spent the day “crying and fighting for my 2 older children.”
“[The kids] had returned yesterday after being withheld and they were expressing how excited they were to spend this year with me doing fireworks,” she wrote “Their dad even told me we could EXTEND it to Monday so I relayed them the exciting news just for him to take it back? It was lies to them and my gut was wrenching to witness them cry, confused and asking why…”
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Taylor Frankie Paul’s relationship timeline with Dakota Mortensen isn’t easy to pin down after numerous breakups — but how long were they actually together in between their public splits? Taylor and Dakota started dating before the show premiered on Hulu in September 2024. Dakota was Taylor’s first public […]
Taylor subsequently defended her decision to attend rehab, insisting that she wanted to “clear up any rumors.”
“I knew that I was in a spot to take a step back and be like, ‘OK, we need to reset,’” Paul said. “But facilities are not for just substance. … There are a list of reasons why people go into that. Number one priority was just a reset for my mental health, and to get away, decompress, whether it’s one day, whether it’s seven, whether it’s 30. I willingly did that.”
The Mormon Wives star clapped back at those who “judged” her for seeking treatment, saying, “It kind of bums me out that [it was] kind of weaponized against me, actually doing the right thing of noticing I needed extra help, and whatever that may be.”
“I ended up finding a really good antidepressant that has been working for me,” she continued. “I will share the meds eventually, however, I like to trial and error before I talk about them because it takes a while to set in, and I would hate to be recommending something that I don’t even like myself.”
Her legal battle with Tate comes amid her ongoing conflict with ex-boyfriend Mortensen. The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 5 production was suspended in March when Utah’s Draper City Police Department investigated domestic violence allegations involving both Taylor and Morstenson. Prosecutors chose not to pursue criminal charges. (ABC also pulled Taylor’s season of The Bachelorette from its schedule at the time.)
Both filed restraining orders against each other, with a judge giving Mortensen temporary custody of Ever in March. A judge later lifted Taylor’s supervised visitation with Ever, though she and Mortensen were ordered to stay away 100 feet from each other for a period of three years. (Taylor and Mortensen are scheduled to appear in court again on Wednesday, July 8.)
